the heart that loves me the same
Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
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#1
If I can stop one heart from breaking
If I can ease one life the aching
It can’t be logically called a return when his visits to Stormbreak are just that - visits - but it feels like a return in an emotional sense. Being away from Phoebe is hard, a difficulty Harper is scarcely coping with, but neither can shirk their duties and allegiances. Harper to Torchline and Safrin’s city, Phoebe to Frey’s mission and her calling as a demigod. Realistically he knows this is the best they can achieve. It doesn’t make it easier.

In their time apart, much has happened. Perhaps more internally admittedly but it has left him with a heavy mind and a tentatively hopeful heart. Edmund’s sweet face and baby cheeks had brought something to the fore of his mind. He is older than Phoebe, maybe that’s why he is beginning to have these thoughts. Thoughts of family, of children. Something more concrete between the two of them.

Stepping inside the threshold of the house she keeps here, Harper finds it empty. Pocketing his key, he sets about making tea of their favored flavors. When two steaming cups are set on the dining table, he sits and nurses his own, trying to drown the butterflies and anxieties alike in his stomach. Surely she’ll know the moment she sees him that he has something on his mind. They don’t have sit down talks like this often, preferring the intimacy of being intertwined on the couch or bed while they share stories of what had transpired in their time apart. Still, as blatant as the setup is, it’s a way to force himself not to abandon the topic as soon as he’s faced with the chance to bring it up.
I shall not live in vain
HARPER
Phoebe Steadman
the Nightingale
Midwife

Age: 26 | Height: 5'9" | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Greatwood
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#2
Phoebe
The Nightingale
Phoebe knew to expect Harper back that day, which was why she was out when he arrived. She had gone to the market to pick up a few things for supper - some of his favorite things to make it special. The time they had together was precious after all, and so she wished to make sure he enjoyed his time. The more comfortable they got, the happier she felt, the more she worried that the end was drawing ever closer. It had been that way with Emmett. It had been that way with Sunjata too. The feeling of security was an unfortunate red flag, one she wanted to drown in pot pies and sweets.

But when she arrived back, basket of goods in hand, her expression dropped. There sat Harper with two cups of tea, serious faced and silent. Before he could catch her gaze she looked at the ground, gathering her own wits and strength. All good things came to an end after all, right? This was just her fate - happiness stolen away at the height of its glory. If she could just keep from crying, she could be pleased with how she handled it.

"I...take it I'm in trouble or...you're now happy?" she said, daring to glance up at him, wary with concern.
love is the flower you've got to let grow
Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
Level: 5 - Strg: 15 - Dext: 15 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 19 - Int:
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#3
If I can stop one heart from breaking
If I can ease one life the aching
As soon as the door opens and he looks up instinctively, Harper knows his own single-minded focus has triggered the wrong reaction in his partner. Even before her tremulous words fill the space between them, he is rising and abandoning his tea, skirting around the table to gently take the bags from her arms and deposit them on the floor. Taking her hands he squeezes them gently. "No, no, nothing like that. I was just stuck in my head." He has learned the lingering veins of trauma in her mind through years of learning her, and Harper gently pulls her forward to sit her down in one of the dining chairs. Kneeling in front of her, changing his plans on the fly as was his strongest skill.

"It's nothing bad. At least...I hope not." Harper sucks in a deep breath and exhales it slowly. He had wanted to build up a little to the topic, but he also can't afford to let her fear ruminate. His own comfort has to be forsaken. "While in Torchline I've been visiting with Maeve and her son Edmund. She told me you helped with his birth?" Leading with the question to hopefully distract her with thinking back to that time, prompting responses to get her talking. "I don't -" exhaling in a huff of frustration as his words fail him, he leans forward and presses his forehead to her hands, chilly from the cold outside. It's easier to say when he's not looking into her face, stricken and pale for the wrong reasons. "I'll just...say it. I want to know what you think about...about starting a family? With me?" With his eyes closed and bowed over her hands, it's like he's just practicing the words again, as he had been for days now.
I shall not live in vain
HARPER
Phoebe Steadman
the Nightingale
Midwife

Age: 26 | Height: 5'9" | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Greatwood
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#4
Phoebe
The Nightingale
He assured her nothing was wrong, but such assurances had been given before by others. Words like that could mean little with the right interpretation. "Oh...what about." she asked quietly, looking at their hands. It was easier that way than looking at his face as she brought her to a seat. Another bad sign. What else could he have to say except something that would upset her?

But his next question caught her off guard. Maeve's son? "Yes, I was her midwife for Edmund." she said, clearly confused by what she considered a change in topic...which then caused new fears to arise. "Is something wrong? Is he alright?" she asked, half rising to go grab her medical bag at once, not considering that the skyboats were likely nearing their last trip for the day at that hour. But he continued holding her hands, pressed to his forehead, and so she sat once more. Whatever he had to say apparently needed saying while he was knelt on the floor.

His words didn't register at first. Static filled her ears instead and a wave of...nothingness washed over her. The words didn't fit in the narrative she had built in her head, and thus seemed without meaning for a few long moments as she stared at him blankly. But slowly, the meaning sunk in and her lips curved up in a slow smile. She twisted her hands so they could rest on either side of his face to tilt it up towards her. "You...you mean it? You want children with me? Now?" she said. Of course she knew not right in that exact moment now but not maybe, not someday, but the near as-soon-as-she-conceived future now.
love is the flower you've got to let grow
Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
Level: 5 - Strg: 15 - Dext: 15 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 19 - Int:
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#5
If I can stop one heart from breaking
If I can ease one life the aching
He can't do anything to ease her mind aside from come clean at this point. And hold tight when her anxiety spikes, scarred hands enveloping her own to keep her seated before him. He can't choke out a comfort for her, not when the words he's planning to say are shoving all others to the back of the line. The moments tick on at a snail's pace, and his shoulders tighten with each one, unnaturally still. Just as he had been in similar moments early in life, kneeling before his trainers, shirtless and awaiting the lash of their punishment. She holds so much more power than they ever did. Wielding a pain so much worse than the splitting of flesh.

Her hands are soft on his face, and his fingers fall away from her wrists helplessly, allowing her to do as she wished. Reluctantly he looks up at her, and though her blooming smile is reason to hope, they're both out on a limb here. "I know you have a lot of trauma surrounding the idea, and I won't be hurt if you say no," he whispers. "But...yes. We'd have to figure some things out - I'm no traditionalist, but I'd like to be sworn together in lieu of marriage somehow - but I really, really want to be a dad." His eyes are a little wet, scared to be so vulnerable, but the corners of his mouth tremble into a tiny smile. Hands lifting to cover hers where they cradle his cheeks. "And I want you to be their mom."
I shall not live in vain
HARPER
Phoebe Steadman
the Nightingale
Midwife

Age: 26 | Height: 5'9" | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Greatwood
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#6
Phoebe
The Nightingale
His words are a balm on old wounds, softening scars and hurts she kept buried away. Without further hesitation she leaned forward and kissed him fiercely. Being a mother had been her greatest desire in life, one that had stayed with her year after year, even if she had to focus on other things in the meantime. She pressed her forehead against his, grinning brightly, laughter threatening to break through her smile. "I'd love to be their mom." she said softly, unable to help the giggle. Their mom...her.

The thought of being sworn together made her face falter a bit - more trauma surrounded that than children. Sunjata had made sure that would be the case. But...was it so much to ask really? Being married to Sunjata hadn't meant she couldn't walk away when things got bad. Not that she thought they would with Harper but...anything could happen. "We could have rings maybe?" she said, offering her only idea. "I'm not...I'm not sure I want any big ceremony...if that's okay?" she asked, hoping that was acceptable.
love is the flower you've got to let grow
Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
Level: 5 - Strg: 15 - Dext: 15 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 19 - Int:
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#7
If I can stop one heart from breaking
If I can ease one life the aching
He has to lean forward and up to follow the demanding pull of her hands, but it's worth it for the sear of her kiss against his lips. It chases away his insecurities faster than her words could have. Dropping his own hands from her so that he might wrap them loosely around her waist where she sits in the chair, thumb caressing in mindless circles until she releases him. Only then does his own smile blossom, brightening his face into a sunny display, dimples popping and blue eyes bright. "Yeah?" A silly thing to say, but he's too giddy to think of anything better than confirmation.

Harper is more than ready to compromise, and when she falters and offers what she can, he meets her halfway. "Rings would be great," he whispers, and presses a soft kiss to her lips again. "Just something for you and I. So I can wear a mark of you everywhere." Not everyone wore rings in Caido, but there were enough outlanders that they respected the notion that it meant someone was off the market. And then he could twist and turn it when he missed her, look down and be reminded that while she was not at his side, she was not gone. "If you'll have me permanently, of course." Foreheads still pressed together, he lifts his eyes to her, a spark of insecurity rearing its head again. Hoping she would want the rings for more than appeasing him in lieu of a wedding. That she would consider it with the same permanency.
I shall not live in vain
HARPER
Phoebe Steadman
the Nightingale
Midwife

Age: 26 | Height: 5'9" | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Greatwood
Level: 5 - Strg: 32 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 41 - Luck: 41 - Int:
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#8
Phoebe
The Nightingale
"Yeah!" she said, laughing brightly at his hesitance now.

Thankfully, rings seemed a good compromise, and she kissed him back easily as he agreed. Of course, there was another caveat. To be his - permanently. She had made such a promise to Sunjata once, and him to her. And look how that all ended. That was the frailty of words - they could be easily squashed by action should one not hold them to heart. But Phoebe was not so weak in character as her ex-husband, who flitted from pleasure to pleasure without a care for anyone but himself. "So long as you don't cheat on me, then of course I will." she said with a light laugh. The weight of it perhaps hit her less than it hit him, the want of children of far greater importance to her than the rings or their meaning. But she could give him that promise, if it helped him feel more secure. She remembered that feeling, and unlike Sunjata had done for her, she would not fail Harper in this.

"So...we need to find rings then?" she asked with a bright smile.
love is the flower you've got to let grow
Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
Level: 5 - Strg: 15 - Dext: 15 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 19 - Int:
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#9
If I can stop one heart from breaking
If I can ease one life the aching
His smile only brightens at her assurance, though it dies moments after at her rather light-hearted warning. He knows it is only her past that makes her so cynical, and that it is not targeted at him directly, but it hurts all the same. "I know I can only prove it day by day, but I would never," he vows quietly. Nobody had ever propositioned him in the time he'd been with her, but it didn't matter. He had been loyal to a dead woman for years before he met Phoebe. Had only felt he could let her go after speaking to Delphia. He was not a man who would cheat.

"Ring hunting it is," he laughs, warm and willing to move forward. Designs and the like don't matter much to him. "And Maeve told me when she returned a quest from Safrin, that Safrin instituted protective magic for all the children in Caido during the war. If any are at risk of harm, they will be secreted away - so we don't have to worry about our children coming to any harm if we have them now." Face alight with ecstatic joy, that last little hurdle that had kept him quiet of his desires finally overcome.
I shall not live in vain
HARPER
Phoebe Steadman
the Nightingale
Midwife

Age: 26 | Height: 5'9" | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Greatwood
Level: 5 - Strg: 32 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 41 - Luck: 41 - Int:
PIM - Mythical - Dragon (Electricity) BRANBAST - Mythical - Sear Cat (Speech)
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#10
Phoebe
The Nightingale
Phoebe saw the slight shift in his face, and she was quick to lean forward to kiss the sour expression away. "I know, because you're a better man than he could ever dream of being, and one of my biggest mistakes was not leaving with you that day." she said softly. He, in this context, being Sunjata of course. She didn't want to sour fhe mood more with his name.

"There is a jeweler not far from here. They've reasonable prices too." she said with a smile. It only widened at the news of Safrin's blessing on the children of Caido. "You must give Safrin my thanks when next you see her. Her blessing is a great comfort." she said with a bright smile. And between that and the garden Frey would help her make, it seemed future generations were much more secure than she could have anticipated.
love is the flower you've got to let grow
Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
Level: 5 - Strg: 15 - Dext: 15 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 19 - Int:
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#11
If I can stop one heart from breaking
If I can ease one life the aching
He leans into her kiss and lets it turn his consternation into a slight smile. It’s not as if he blames her for her doubts, her scars, but his involvement in the shadow Sunjata has left is difficult at times. “No more talk of regrets. We’re past that - it got us here. And I like where we are.” Difficulties and all. It was worth it to be here, after all the work and compromise, finally achieving happiness that they both deserved.

“We can visit them after we eat?” It feels like a rush, but Harper has been thinking over this for the better half of a season. He isn’t liable to change his mind now. Plus he’d hate to waste the food she’d brought inside. “I don’t know when I’ll see her next - you know I hate to impose - but I’ll thank her for the both of us.” Safrin’s grace and kindness has never ceased to amaze him, and though they follow different deities he feels they couldn’t be more perfectly placed. “I love you,” he murmurs as he leans up to kiss her again, seemingly incapable of stopping.
I shall not live in vain
HARPER
Phoebe Steadman
the Nightingale
Midwife

Age: 26 | Height: 5'9" | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Greatwood
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#12
Phoebe
The Nightingale
Phoebe couldn't help but smile, nodding at his words. "I do too." she said. It had been no easy matter getting to where they were. In fact, it had been quite the climb, working through each other's hesitancies and scars. There had been diseases that kept them apart for months on end. But ultimately they were here, together, talking about starting a family together. She could not have wished for a better place to wind up along the long road they had taken together.

"Of course." she said with a smile, kissing his forehead before standing to go and prep dinner. "I have stock in the ice cabinet and a fresh loaf proofing in the oven. And all the ingredients for beef stew." she said with a grin. It was his favorite meal after all. Clearly, even though he planned this important conversation, she had planned to spoil him on his return from Stormbreak. "Ronin is building another skyport into the Greatwood. Maybe you could ask her for more bolts to protect it? Though the Greatwood is more defended against the Ascended than Torchline."

Phoebe kissed him back happily. "I love you too." she said before skirting around him to set to making supper.
love is the flower you've got to let grow
Harper Quinn
the Stalwart
Teacher

Age: 33 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Nomadic
Level: 5 - Strg: 15 - Dext: 15 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 19 - Int:
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#13
If I can stop one heart from breaking
If I can ease one life the aching
He shuffles back to allow her room to stand, following her lead and leaning against the table instead to watch her shuffle about with a fond look in his eyes. “You spoil me,” he interjects, even as his lips crease into an eager grin at the prospect. “How am I ever supposed to go back to Torchline now?” Sorry Maeve, have to turn in my notice, my wife-to-be made stew and I ate so much I can’t walk to the skyport.

Hoisting himself backwards to sit on the table, Harper idly kicks his heels and considers the idea. “I don’t know much about the Greatwood, but it’s an idea. The Fae deserve as much of a break as they can with what they’ve been through.” He had arrived after all of it had gone down, but it’s far from old news. The injustice of it still rankles at him. “Aurelia has disappeared, and Maeve is ruling alone with a baby on her hands. Maybe she’ll have ideas for Torchline too. Ray and I do what we can, but…” he shrugs helplessly. Maeve’s vision for Torchline is admirable, and he is there to help her at every step, but a little help from Safrin would never go amiss. Even if he’s still floored by her generosity with the children of Caido.

Standing he joins her at the counter, wrapping his arms around her waist and resting his chin on her shoulder to watch her work. Wanting to be close even with nothing exciting happening beneath her hands.
I shall not live in vain
HARPER
Phoebe Steadman
the Nightingale
Midwife

Age: 26 | Height: 5'9" | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Greatwood
Level: 5 - Strg: 32 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 41 - Luck: 41 - Int:
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#14
Phoebe
The Nightingale
A wicked grin curved her lips as Phoebe glanced back at him. "Perhaps that is the point." she said with a light laugh. Fill him up with stew so he couldn't get back to Torchline and would be forced to stay with her. What a shame. Of course she hadn't planned anything nearly so devious but she could pretend for the sake of a joke.

Phoebe listened quietly as he spoke, getting the bread baking before getting the stew going on the stove. The smells of searing meat and spices began to fill the air, soon followed by an array of vegetables as she chopped them up and tossed them into the pot. His arms wrapped around her waist and she sighed contentedly, picking up potatoes to peel and chop.

But then a wriggling thought came into the back of her mind, and she considered being quiet about it until she realized it was best to get it out. "Harper..." she said gently. "You do know that sometimes Safrin uses her male followers to create demigods, right? She has done so with both Ronin and Sunjata." she said, tilting her head to the side to look at him. But despite the topic, her expression remained soft and happy, a small smile on her lips. "I just...well if she asks it of you, I want you to know I wouldn't be angry. I would love such a child as much as my own."
love is the flower you've got to let grow


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